Category Manager

Aversan Inc.; Toronto; Hybrid; CAD 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading company in the engineering sector is seeking a qualified Category Manager to enhance supplier management and procurement strategy. This role involves overseeing key supplier selection processes, ensuring compliance with strategies, and providing operational support to achieve business-critical goals. The ideal candidate has a proven track record in managing RFIs/RFPs and a strong understanding of market dynamics.

Qualifications

• Strong understanding of supplier markets and emerging technologies.
• Proven track record in managing RFIs/RFPs.
• Effective supplier performance and relationship management.

Responsibilities

• Lead supplier selection exercises and manage procurement process.
• Monitor category markets to optimize strategies.
• Ensure compliance and efficient supplier performance management.

Skills

Supplier relationship management

Strategic input

Supplier performance management

Tools

Procurement tools

Job description

Aversan Inc. (www.aversan.com) is a trusted multi-service engineering and electronics manufacturing company. Aversan delivers leading-edge and reliable safety-critical electronics and software systems to the aerospace, defense, and space industries.

We are currently seeking a qualified Category Manager to join our team.

Location: Toronto, ON

Schedule: Hybrid

Description

The Category Manager (CM) may support one or several procurement categories. Reporting to the relevant Global Category Manager (GCM) and/or Categories Team Leader (CTL) depending on geographic location, the CM is accountable for end-to-end performance of the acquisition process, managing Requests for Information (RFI) and/or Requests for Proposal (RFP) until the PVet 4 stage for critical work packages (up to PVet 5 in some Regions).

The CM is expected to lead major / business-critical supplier selection exercises to support business needs and ensures the deployment, implementation, and monitoring of agreed category strategies. Sometimes, the CM can be in charge to animate and manage several Category Boards (CBs).

Strategy

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide input into worldwide category strategies for short, medium, and long-term needs.
• Ensure the relevant players have a good knowledge of Client needs and support the category strategy to secure targeted projects and customer competitive advantage.
• Ensure that clear and measurable savings targets are identified and delivered by category and endorsed by business / project.
• Ensure category commitment and spend compliance tracking is well reported.
  
  

Procurement Competitiveness Capture

• Monitor category markets on an ongoing basis to identify and understand key players, newcomers, economic evolutions, market or regulation constraints, innovations, and technology to support up-to-date category strategies.
• Provide insights into how products/projects could be more competitive through different suppliers, methodologies, or technologies.
• Support the preparation of Make/Buy decisions (led by the Procurement Product Manager - PPM) in conjunction with PPMs and cross-functional teams to optimize business performance.
  
  

Governance, Leadership, and Performance Management:

• Ensure Client governance is applied using KPIs and root cause corrective actions.
  
  

Supplier / Acquisition Management:

• Responsible for supplier relationship management and continuous improvement within the category (with Supplier Performance Management support if needed).
• Manage supplier performance, including quality, cost, delivery, contractual performance, and innovation.
• Ensure supplier competitions follow governance, are fair, and enhance business/customer performance.
• Negotiate supplier contracts and framework agreements when required, in line with category strategies.
• Ensure adoption and utilization of global contracts/framework agreements.
• Ensure legal, governmental, or specific customer compliance requirements are considered during category strategy implementation.
• Fully utilize Client e-Acquisition and all procurement tools according to global governance.
• Understand and manage risks, opportunities, and tiered supply chain mapping to optimize performance.
• Identify suppliers requiring development actions and support the Supplier Development Team in implementing these actions.
  
  

Operational Support

• Ensure Tactical Buyers receive all required information to raise Procurement Orders.
  
  

Relationships

• The CM works closely with the Global Category Manager (GCM), Categories Team Leader (CTL), Tactical Buyers (TB), Procurement Product Managers (PPM), and other cross-functional teams.
• All CM actions must align with strategies defined by the GCM, with a regular feedback loop maintained.
  
  

Basic Qualification

• Strong understanding of supplier markets, emerging technologies, and innovations.
• Proven track record in managing RFIs/RFPs and supplier selections for critical work packages.
• Effective supplier performance and relationship management.
• Strong governance, strategic input, and procurement tool proficiency.
  
  

About The Client

Aversan recruits top professional talent in the industry, providing quality software, hardware and systems engineering solutions for a variety of industries and applications. Upon reviewing each candidate's information, Aversan will only contact eligible individuals for the above-mentioned positions.